Inside the Autistic Brain - THE RESULTS ARE IN!

The results are in! I have been waiting since my last video and am excited to share with you the brain scan results. In this video, I am joined by Dr. Andrew Hill from Peak Brain Institute as he explains the results of the QEEG Brain Scan I had in London.
Learn more about the Peak Brain Institute here: peakbraininstitute.com/
🎞️Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction
0:32 The QEEG Brain Scan in London
0:59 The Performance Test
4:16 Happy Child vs Grumpy Old Man
6:17 Brain Fog and Fatigue
7:39 Sleep & Recovery
9:06 Visual Stress & Tension
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👋Welcome to Autism From The Inside!!!
If you're autistic or think you or someone you love might be on the autism spectrum, this channel is for you!
I'm Paul Micallef, and I discovered my own autism at age 30.
Yes, I know, I don't look autistic. That's exactly why I started this channel in the first place because if I didn't show you, you would never know.
Autism affects many (if not all!) aspects of our lives, so on this channel, I want to show you what Autism looks like in real people and give you some insight into what's happening for us on the inside. We'll break down myths and misconceptions, discuss how to embrace autism and live well, and share what it's like to be an autistic person.
Join me as I share what I've found along my journey, so you don't have to learn it the hard way.
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➡️️ / @autismfromtheinside
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Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy my channel!
Peace,
~ Paul
#autism #asd #autismawareness

[@Geaners100]

The brain not shutting off completely enough to sleep well could be an AuDHD thing. I have had the same problem my entire life and I was recently diagnosed ASD-1 with co-occurring ADHD. I am late-diagnosed for both. It was something I never considered, but it makes perfect sense. Thanks for sharing, Paul. This is fascinating. I would love to have this assessment.

[@burnyizland]

Is there anything we can do to win that sleep battle then, do you know?

[@Judymontel]

@@burnyizland Dealing with this as well - finding ways to allow my brain to fully recover. Hope Paul shares more of his journey with this!!

[@Sinted]

@@burnyizlandI don’t know how relevant this is for you, but I recently was prescribed Vyvanse for weight loss by my family doctor. My sleep quality improved immediately after starting the medication. I’m fairly ignorant of body processes and brain function, but it is astonishing to me that a stimulant could help me sleep better than I have in 20 years. It also, weirdly, has improved - if not eliminated - my restless legs. I have more energy than I have since I was a teenager; it’s amazing for me.

[@burnyizland]

@@Sinted That's a really interesting tip, thank you. My main doctor is very open to off label use of medications. He also usually has a good idea of what's going on in the body to utilize them in the ways we've used them. I'm going to talk to him about this the next time I see him, I'll let you know if I learn anything interesting - just know that it takes a while to get an appointment with any doctor in Canada these days so it could take a while. Thank you again. I'm so glad it worked for you!

[@danielschmidinger8543]

​@@burnyizlanddo everything so your brain can shut off. Turn off all lights, at least an hour before going to sleep. Workout during the day, it will make your brain tired in the evening Play chess, sudoku, smartphone games etc. Where you need your brain to work and actually think. Read during the day and before turning off the lights in the evening Don't eat food like meat, Oil, Chips, Chocolate, sugar, onions, no cheese or fried food a few hours (5-6 hours) before going to bed Don't drink any coffe or energy drink 9-10 hours before going to bed. Get clean from any addiction: Weed, alcohol, stimulants, opiates, sugar, food, video games, tv series, etc. Don't watch tiktok or youtube a few hours before going to bed. Try to let your dopamine levels even out as much as possible, watch some long movies or series, instead of shorts which give you dopamine bursts Maybe that's just for me but a cold shower (mine is very cold) makes me very tired. My body raises temperature which is bad for sleeping but after a some time it goes down, especially if I lay down and put the blanket over me. Prepare to lie down for at least 30 minutes to let your brain calm down. Don't give it any new information where you have think, let your brain process your days experiences. You can put on some wave sounds, forest sounds, brown noise, pink noise, white noise, green noise, etc. To help you relax and sleep, allthough I get bored of those sounds pretty quick so for me it doesn't work all the time. Inform yourself about good sleep positions and aquire the right equipment like additional pillows for your back and legs and a matress that fits your body. There are also cooling and heating matresses that regulate your body temperature during sleep Before bed you can have some snacks like a half banana and some walnuts, just inform yourself on which food is easy to digest and helps you sleep and lets you produce more melatonin I think I mentioned pretty much everything that helps me. The most important points are: Turning off the lights and not being on your phone before bed. working out (strength training and cardio but you don't need to do much everyday, you also need rest and recovery days, listen to your body), using my brain in quizes, puzzles, chess, etc. Not eating heavy food at least 5-6 hours before bed And taking a cold shower in the morning and the evening (a warm shower is okay aswell because it lowers body temperature afterwards but it doesn't reduce inflammation) Inflammation is also a big factor why we can't sleep because it affects the sleep center in our brain and can cause neuro inflammation which you probably have if you have brain fog regularly. To reduce inflammation you should reduce meat, oil (not olive oil) and processed food and food and drinks with sugar in it because regular sugar consumption can cause chronic inflammation and neuroinflammtion and other illnesses like metabolic disorder which also makes it hard to sleep. Actually everything is kind of important but test it our for yourself. My tips will help you sleep better for sure And just one personal tip: if you have any addicitons, especially fast food addiction or any fried food, you develop strong cravings which also can make it very hard to sleep in the night and create a vicious cycle of insomnia because not sleeping good enough makes your cravings worse and your worse cravings make your sleep worse.

[@stefansauvageonwhat-a-twis1369]

0:59 Heh seeing someone answer "thanks" to "how are you doing" is so autistically confusing ironically

[@DrHill]

🤣

[@011silbermond]

I thought the same thing, but actually I heard this here in Germany very often coming from older people as if it is just a phrase. But let´s be honest in a talk like this should he first tell us 15 minutes about how he slept? lol

[@jennifermoore2944]

Thank you for being vulnerable & allowing us to see this! It was really helpful!

[@RubberTag]

Staying in the middle ground without burning out is like impossible 😄 I suck at having a balance (not a physical one), always one extreme to one way unfortunately. I found it interesting that he said that you could do stuff to change some of the issues you have in your brain. I would love to hear more from someone explaining what to do..

[@marymakesmandalas6068]

Very brave of you to share this with us. Thank you.

[@SatansWerewolf]

I've been eagerly awaiting the results of your brain scan. Thank you for sharing the results.

[@sjzara]

I have a scientific background. I’m hugely skeptical of this for several reasons. One is no error bars on the charts - no idea of the significance of differences. The other is absurd precision - no good scientist would present percentages to three significant figures. This doesn’t have the rigour to inspire any confidence.

[@BipolarCourage]

When I looked it up, seems not much credibility

[@memyselfandchristina]

Agreed. The confidence with which he makes his claims ("X value on the chart might mean you are like Y") is way too strong compared to the overall confidence of that area of research for being able to make such claims based on the evidence.

[@DrHill]

look at the literature behind the Neuroguide QEEG database. That is what this population metric is created from. They are Z-scores, not significant figures, as well.

[@BipolarCourage]

@@memyselfandchristina also, calling it a "brain scan" is misleading. More like taking an EEG & trying to deduce more from it than intended.

[@SueBrownawell]

I was also concerned with how much was known about Paul before the results were read - it is very easy to bias the "results."

[@interdimensionalsailboat]

I have that immediate burnout aswell. I cannot believe i need the amount of rest that i do then...

[@ricciread1184]

The poets brain , as an autistic poet I love that

[@shaynaformity1384]

My sleep vastly improved from doing neurofeedback. I hope it helps you, too, Paul.

[@kdcraft89]

A couple of decades ago I was diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea (osa) and got a cpap and used it every night since. It made an enormous difference in my quality of life. I'm still autistic, but the excruciating exhaustion doesn't happen like it did before I got it. It took a while for my brain to "heal" from being sleep (mostly REM) deprived for my whole life. Yes, I had it (OSA) as a child, too. Things got a lot better after that, even though I didn't know I was autistic and struggled socially, etc. I think that the hypersensitivity to light, sound, etc. was better in some ways, though it is still there. There is not a cure for autism, but being sleep deprived on top of autism may be something that can be cured/managed. I still get overwhelm and exhaustion if I overdo the social stuff.

[@kdcraft89]

P.S. Not only do I sometimes mask during the day, I wear a mask all night, too, haha.

[@interstellarsurfer]

4:06 "but you can also train this away..' That is what a quack sounds like. 🦆

[@PeteLewisWoodwork]

Quote: "Don't watch TV, avoid screens". I hate watching or hearing TV and I had a doc appointment today; there is a screen continuously looping all the bad things that go wrong in life and it was annoying to see it rolling in the periphery of my view. I tried avoiding eye contact with any of the 14 people (yes, I counted them) in the tiny room and eventually the only place left to look was at the doom screen or the blinding ceiling lights.

[@koalamama2]

100% relatable!

[@oneeyedphotographer]

Complain, there might be a quiet area. I went to my GP for a new prescription for eye drops, I complained about the TV and we spent more time talking about autism than my eye.

[@rob._.]

I would love to hear more about the strategies that he was talking about, to train the brain. I feel very similar to you, and him saying something about plasticity and training sounds very intriguing to me.

[@DrHill]

The training I was referring to is “neurofeedback”, or gentle biofeedback shaping the EEG, blood flow, etc to change the brain performance over time. Iterative and progressive - personal training for the brain resources.

[@shaynaformity1384]

By training, he means neurofeedback, where your brain is scanned in real time and you're given an auditory or visual signal when your brain is moving in the desired direction.

[@rob._.]

@@DrHill very interesting, I'll look into it thanks!

[@Robert_Byland]

Very cool to have that kind of insight into your brain functions! I'm quite curious to see my own.

[@savedbygrace8445]

I watched the recording of your procedures intently. As a child of 10/11 I had what i now know to be meltdowns, very bad meltdowns. I was hospitalised many a time due to extensive, prolonged, odd behaviour with earache being the main physical symptom. I was given many EEG’s to which I never knew the outcome. I also had lumber~punctures (which were excruciatingly painful) I’d be strapped to a bed, on my tummy. Again they came up with nothing. As I got older, I asked my GP if I could see my notes on my hospital admissions, his answer was “they wouldn’t make for a good bedtime story” I struggled through life, copying what others said and done but always feeling awkward and having to make a big effort to fit in. Fast forward to 2011 my grandson was diagnosed as being ‘Autistic’ at the age of 4 (Which made me look into why was he born with this and where did it come from?) I had a screening this year(at 60) and scored 9 for autism, they also wanted me to take a ADHD screening which I also scored high on. I now believe the doctors just didn’t know much about ‘Autism & ADHD therforecI never did get diagnosed. My parents told me when I was a bit older that the Doctors said “should I become unwell again and need to be admitted to hospital that we’d be looking at a Psychiatrist hospital.) I was put on medication 💊 for a good few years and never needed to be re admitted. Subsequently, being a woman, I masked throughput my life, and now I’m trying to be the real authentic me, I’m also a born again Christian which means, I could start afresh; I’m a new creature in ‘Christ Jesus’. This has helped me to see myself through Gods eyes. BTW Paul, I came to your seminar in London (which was amazing.) I met you at the meet and greet part, in the bar. I shared with you about your talk on the ‘foreigner strategy’ and how I resonated with all that you shared. I also mentioned my grandson, who’s-also ‘Autistic’ had locks for a few yrs, but then decided he’d brave the barber’s chair and off they went. Ps Keep up the amazing work you do in helping us understand ourselves, others and the world 🌍 at large. Blessing to all on AFTI xxx

[@melissamiller2696]

Maybe it's because I am sleepy, but I found it hard to follow this guy. He's also using a lot of technical terms and talks fast. Maybe you could chunk it out into several videos where you explain it and any advice he gives you. It's seem really interesting and useful, if one can understand.

[@Nilamoire]

I also would like a deeper explanation of what he was describing, and I’m super fascinated to understand what can be done to alter the brain, given this info.

[@katheriney8318]

I felt overwhelmed as well. Too much too fast for me.

[@elizabethmeadows8751]

I need Cliff Notes. I would have to watch this 30 times to get it. He talks too fast (or I process too slow).

[@Maaariella]

I felt the same...

[@uncertainultradian]

Yeah, I had to pause it every few words and process. The best I could derive from it is that high-quality sleep seems fundamental; and that there's such a thing as EQ alongside IQ (and SQ too). I hadn't known there was a term for it. I found a short but thorough summary of those three, entitled "Our Three Main Intelligences," on a website called minessence, and that was pretty interesting. To suddenly deduce some nonsense from that and experience: it seems like my learning in the EQ "field" may not neuronally bind or stick properly, and that whereas that stuff is usually tacit learning people aren't aware of, I become indirectly aware of it as I puzzle over my difficulties with it; gradually build up a rule-based simulacrum of it based on self-observation; and then insistently try to rationalise it via that abstraction, unaware that the essential "form" of the abstraction I'm puzzling over is fundamentally incompatible with rational processing and can never be solved. 30+ years of introspective self-study ensue, never to conclude. I'm doing it right now! I see you, Brain! Get out of my head! If my silly musings are vaguely realistic, I wonder about the odd mixing (or whatever it was) of social and sensory processing, which I related to quite a bit in the video. Perhaps that's what leads to both my inability to ever develop a concrete sense of what's socially safe or correct; and to my continuously finding my favourite songs/subjects/etc. to be almost as profound and exciting as when I'd first encountered them.

[@tiiaj7589]

I had a neurofeedback brain scan similar to this done a couple years ago. It was quite interesting. I was surprised and pleased that some areas I'd predicted lower scores in I was actually not too bad at. It would be interesting to compare notes with another autistic brain to see where the similarities are (shot in the dark here 😜but guessing sleep deprivation/quality is going to be similar) and the differences. Like what might be more attributed to autism vs. personality. My brain also presents a lot of ADHD characteristics, which makes a lot of sense; I either have ADHD, and/or Trauma- both pretty common in Autistics.

[@DrHill]

a lot of how i think about QEEG is not about scanning for "truth" or looking for the diagnosis label, but looking at your brain for itself, in all its quirks, and learning to understand the different brain resources (physiology / function) that might be related to big features of stress, sleep, attention, sensory, social, verbal, speed, etc... but at a systems or cognitive neuroscience level - looking at the overlap of performance and physiology.. and then doing population level comparisons to see what sticks up, and see if it matters to you. but people are weird, so we dont assume that unusual QEEGs necessarily *mean* something - it just gives us some ideas about how things might work. The attention testing help restrict / validate some of those QEEG suggested ideas.. but the ones you think are true are the ones likely to be able to be most useful for you to try to push around with neurofeedback, meditation, sleep hacking, other biohacking.. and watch change as you try interventions, So yeah.. you can totally "have" ADHD, or Austim , or a dysregulated Trauma response... and a bunch of other things that doctors might agree on a file system for.. and that suffering totally sucks and is valid and not enjoyable.. but learning how your own brain works will change your relationship with any labels.. AND often gives you ideas about how to make the changes you want. Sorry if this is preachy. I can get on a soapbox on this topic of personal agency through data given any opportunity.

[@DrHill]

@@myhalowithin yeah big white or grey matter changes will totally change your brain. You will see some of speed changes, as well as some of the local stuff if "big" and progressed.. but you also might be surprised as how "typical" EEG can be broadly. or also how non-specfic some things are. for example - the signatures of "brain fog" look very similar, but can come from concussion, cvd19, trauma, sleep issues (apnea), etc.. and you cannot really tell the difference at a high level, but can guess about the fog and sluggish processing. For MS stuff you will see some of those focal changes maybe, but you also might just show general fog / fatigue stuff.

[@BipolarCourage]

@@DrHill seems awfully expensive to have something that is a stab in the dark

[@oneeyedphotographer]

@@DrHill I have been wondering whether the next edition of DSM might break autism into tiny pieces. There are so many different sets of traits that it seems to me that they might be different disorders. I hate that word. The first definition that comes up is illness. I'm NOT SICK. I did have a good alternative, but I've forgotten it. I wonder whether a diagnosis is actually useful? Whether I am diagnosed autistic or not, I have a set of traits, some of them disadvantageous. For those, I needed better help than being caned for not doing my homework. I was good at maths and sciences, perhaps my education in those should have been accelerated. And those without regard for whether I was diagnosed autistic, ADHD, OCD. Those are illustrative.

[@juliak.9390]

⁠“but learning how your own brain works will change your relationship with any labels…AND often gives you ideas about how to make the changes you want.“ This is the way I am going through life-educating myself about how and why everything happens inside me and reacting to the outside world. Finding out I am Audhd last year helped to see so much clearer! 😊 Now I am at the path of learning to regulate pauses in my everyday-life. After a very emotionally moving day one in Munich last month I spent a second day in the presence of two very special neurodiverse people-and beside some talking we spent 86% of our resources ( time, energy, open-ness) on feeling the drainage of those resources for one out of us three and instantly regulating it together ( one feeling the need for a brake of 5 minutes , me following and feeling my own need for a pause for the first time(!) ) thus keeping us all in a quite homogenically “chilled zone“ individually and looking out for each other. It was more co-regulation AND new: being able to feel the need for regulation myself than I have ever experienced 😌 It was pure bliss😊 I had the thought: if I had this like once a week in my everyday life it would be like a deeply satisfying therapy! I felt refreshed and… regulated. Now I wonder how to implement this in my day to day life. I am not quite there and I wonder if I can do it on my own, since I seem to need „people“ to feel myself… So what I started to do is to order myself a break or half a day of in the swing after doing one hard thing a day. Although it’s quite technical it starts working😊 Just giving myself free TIME to recover just in case -is working like magic! Also I am doing Taketina, a rhythm therapy that focusses on finding the sweet spot of „flow energy“ whilst being challenged by the work of doing 2 different rhythms with your hands and feet while singing ( it’s fun-Is swear 😂!) What this therapy actually does is train you to get to know the sweet spot of „perfect operating conditions ( you are encouraged to step out off any part that challenges you at any time! Be it: the clapping or the steps, the singing or the people. You may choose to rest, sitting or lying down. But you shall do it while staying connected-not stepping outside off the group. The second thing it does is train your vagal response to actually STAY connected and maybe even regulated through all the (created )overly challenging work-like situation ( initially everybody tries to „keep up“ 😂 before remembering to stay within the fun-flow-parameter) This is the part where I feel the most growth as an autistic person. At the moment I am taking part in a clinical study regarding Taketina that will show some results within a year maybe. Dr.Hill what do you think about the Safe and sound protocol by Dr. Steven Porges to regulate the nervous system through sound? Would be very interested if there are overlapping studies regarding the polyvagal theory and neurofeedback? Greetings from Germany, Julia

[@bvmay11]

Very interesting and insightful look into your brain - helps me to understand on a much clearer level some of the ways in which the neuro-divergent brain operates. Pretty amazing how the objective and measurable brain analysis correlates so well to your experience in the world. As a science based person this makes so much sense to me. Very cool. And I love how laid back and matter of fact the researcher was...reporting the data without any commentary and opinions. And also the concept of how to use the info to train your brain to become stronger in certain areas. Thanks for sharing.

[@gigahorse1475]

This isn’t objective. The “researcher” is a scammer. I work in a neuroimaging lab and it is common knowledge among us that you cannot learn about an individual person’s strengths and weaknesses through a measurement of brain activity. Studies done using brain activity are only legitimate if they have a large sample size and the data are averaged (ex: 25 autistic people’s data averaged vs 25 neurotypical data averaged). There is no way to tell an autistic brain from a neurotypical brain using an EEG or anything like it!

[@crustycobs2669]

Diagnosed ADHD, but self-diagnosed Aspie, 4 out of 10 signs. Poor sleeper, brain won't turn off. Have got a permanent ''jukebox'' of songs popping up. Can't remember having a good sleep. Can hyperfocus, can 'pay attention'', but only if interested. ''20 second response'', a handicap

[@hannahpaul1988]

Fascinating, thanks for sharing! ... Sounds very similar to me, apart from the auditory processing issues; mine can be a nightmare. That (name, pause, question) hack sounds super useful! Gonna ask my husband to do that with me and our son (diagnosed AuDHD). I also have very slow reflexes and possibly dyspraxia, so deliberately do not drive... But yeah, the grumpy old man / the aunt that sees a thousand dangers everywhere in Lemony Snicket's series of unfortunate events is basically me 🤭 I hope you start feeling better rested soon, and please let me know what helps too 😴🧟‍♀️🦉☕😂

[@ericwark81]

Thank you for sharing this! You have helped me so much on my autistic journey to better understand myself and I appreciate it greatly!

[@Bethany.Loveday]

I find crocheting or making something creative with my hands massively helps my brain get the rest it needs. Even more so when I don’t watch tv or listen to anything at the same time, which I still do sometimes, but I definitely notice my mind is more relaxed if I crochet with nothing on or just relaxing piano music in the background. There’s something about creating something with my hands that is effective for me. (I’m AuDHD)

[@AutisticAwakeActivist]

Sleep is my main issue, and yes hate tv, adds are a sensory nightmare , moving adds on news paper arrivals, when I was in Bosnia they genuinely tried to be nice to me and gave me a room instead of shared room but it was next to the generator which literally did me in after 3 days I said I can’t really take it. And I volunteered to do duty medic so I could sleep in the med centre to dodge it..other people phones n music on the bus etc, shopping centres indoors I lose my natural compass, late swimmer, a danger on a bike, squint. The autism Illnesses , gerd ibs oa, etc. emotional dysregulation, not sleeping but not feeling tired either( but I do get dips where I need power naps) irritability. Frustrated with others who lack empathy humanity and common sense. Dysgraphia, delayed processing when stressed, I lack patience. Anxiety , stress , need to plan, hate appointments and early mornings ( used to work nights). Clithes irritations ( socks bras elastic in knickers , army jumpers in the past, nyling and tags, eye make up allergies to most metals, eye squint( but I do have great hearing ) don’t like rubbery type foods or slimy textures in food and greasy fruits n veg like olives. Late speaker and slow growth as a kid with jaundice. Brain shuts down and doesn’t want to know when I’m struggling with things, burn out. Like feeling like you really can’t take it. Meltdowns. Hate not being abled to have face to face dialog. Hate phones felt embarrassed. Stimming , moving and bobbing on my legs , chewing pens etc. these is all what I think off top of my head. When interested or determined I succeed and do it well . Never feeling good enough not good at social or communication reciprocity . , loud, talk too much but I do listen . People think I don’t. I put mental notes and save for later. Asking question, being deemed rude when I’m stressed and get louder as I get more angry etc . Rage when people don’t back off. To name but a few

[@DrHill]

Thanks for sharing, sounds like you are dealing with a lot of uncomfortable activation of your system, and sorry if so - but some great intensity. Hang in there - there are lots of ways to gain control of the stuff that is in the way, and keep the magical stuff that serves you well. There is a really easy to use tool called HRV biofeedback (heartmath makes a good one) that might support you - it can teach more control over that sympathetic/parasympatheic balance, over time. sorta like tech-assisted meditation.

[@Sandra-hc4vo]

i think it is sadly super common for people not to be getting enough rest this day and age. I really wonder how society could be better at large if rest was something considered important on a societal level to take care of.

[@treesart6914]

I find it really hard to link what the dude says to the pictures.

[@gigahorse1475]

It’s because he’s making things up as he goes along, based on what Paul says. He is a scam artist.

[@ProfessorMaple2]

That primer plus a beat before continuing thing might be something I have people try with me when they talk to me. It seems like it would help. Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

[@deborahlee8135]

OMG! a support worker noted the other day that i sometimes will answer questions the following week when i see them again 😂 i think they're questions asked towards the end of our time so i'm struggling more to take things in because i'm tired. I'm finding a lot of processing lag during burnout recovery, but before i just wasnt processing much at all.

[@BillieGote]

The terminology of "pushing one's brain around" is distressing to me as someone who has experienced bullying at various times throughout life. Also, for someone in chronic burnout and with lifelong sleep disorders, pushing my brain around when I desperately need rest and rejuvenation sounds more exhausting. I've been pushing myself with super-human intensity as an undiagnosed AuDHD for my entire life. It's earned me life-imploding burnout, with judgment and disbelief from medical and disability arenas because I masked well enough to hide the internal devastation and present a functioning facade when I was anything but. I appreciate the thought that aspects of one's neurotype might be guided, or "tune-able"; taking a gentler approach as one might with sophisticated & delicate instrumentation might be a more attractive approach. I bristle at chirpy "just do it" demands that don't consider how overstretched and depleted we might already be. There must be a more compassionately paced term than pushing one's grey and white matter around like so much living room furniture. Being as how brain matter is a delicate gelatinous mass, pushing sounds too much like rearranging -- which sounds rather violent for such delicate tissue, or excessively rough at the least. Maybe it's the insomnia + persistent headache RN making me more literal than usual.

[@NinaGothMambaNegra]

Yes, you noticed the thing correctly. Sounded more like aba/conversion style, the idea of training your brain to work more like nt, instead of knowing your own wiring so you can drive the thing. He also kinda tried to impose his own metaphors but Paul did an amazing job replying with his own experience, bringing forth sleep as a priority instead of some other social-behavioral micromanagement.

[@heathermalone]

Ok new question (I've been thinking!) : How much of this is about self-improvement and/or potentially taking control of our challenges, and how much is about helping others to understand what we're going through so we can get the right support? 🤔 For your example, Paul, if you don't mind me using it: How much is about you learning how to rest, and how much is about learning how to make the world more restful? I'm guessing it's a bit of both. Autistic brains have so much to offer, and yet we're burning out so quickly. And you are just one example, but I feel many of us relate..

[@Zanaze_banane]

This was so insightful, thank you for sharing Paul. Regarding burning out engagements too quickly, I highly recommend researching Stoicism. Seneca in particular. This has helped me learn the art of temperance and turn it into a habit which, as Dr Hill explains, is utilizing the brain's plasticity. Daily (at least) reflection is also a massive part of this.

[@jimwilliams3816]

This was interesting, and I wouldn’t mind knowing more about my brain in this way. I do have some comments on how the way he described things did and didn’t work for me, and my initial reaction is that this relates to autistic traits of mine. I wonder if he needs to adjust his descriptive style for autistic people. Brain activity, the mechanistic ways in which it works, and the results it produces are what I am looking for and can process. I immediately bristled at the occasional characterization of a brain response as “not good,” which is probably a common trigger for autistic people: that typical ways of thinking are always the best is an invalidating idea for me. PDA also makes me feel those characterizations should be up to me, and this is in line with the approach he otherwise takes, which is that what we want to do with our brains is up to us, as it should be. I imagine some neurotypes can’t follow any of the “technical rhubarb,” and want to cut to the chase of “good/bad,” but in general I would say that such characterizations ought to be Part B, a summary view provided on request. What felt even more autistic to me was my response to characterizations like “grumpy old man.” I wasn’t fond of them - they are somewhat judgmental in nature, and that one is probably more triggery if you’re old enough to sometimes feel like one - but more significantly, they told me very little, in the same way that I don’t intuit social cues that well. On all levels, what I need and want is a lot of mechanistic data and context, which I would then slowly patteRn match into my own conclusions. I doubt my conclusions would differ much, but they would be in a language that I understand and can work with.

[@heathermalone]

I am now wanting to research all the different brain waves.. 🙂🧠 I think if I had one of these scans done, I'd want to be able to understand and interpret it myself. I appreciate the analogies Dr Hill uses to explain things without being too technical - does one get some kind of worksheet with all of this written on?

[@berliozchick]

Fascinating! Thank you for sharing. I am keenly interested in finding out if you are successful with getting REST. I am the same, with that daytime sleepiness and yet feeling rushed, which drives me to take care of responsibilities even though I'm exhausted; hence, the bad cycle. What to do? Try to sleep, but it's not always quality. Holiday away? Sometimes. Please do keep us posted if you find things that work. Good luck💚

[@yvonnefederowicz8765]

Getting a reasonably intense workout has always helped me sleep much better. Trying melatonin; I found some studies saying that autistics might process melatonin differently, but they were studies on kids of course.

[@abogado2347]

Thanks for sharing this even though you're burnt out. I must confess that I was eagerly waiting for the results :)

[@koalamama2]

B vitamin patches are the number one thing that saved my sleep and sensory issues. Magnesium, zinc, and fish oil are also huge! But I can't live without methylated B vitamins.

[@judylandry302]

98% of people with Autism have the MTHFR gene mutation. Besides Methyl B12, I also use Methyl form of Folate, too. I keep bringing this up but none of the Autism Channels pay attention to this necessity.

[@rebeccaed2018]

@@judylandry302 I hadn't heard of that, will look into it.

[@koalamama2]

@@judylandry302 Same experience here! x'D

[@natashasullivan4559]

Man.. I wish we could all get scans like this (nd people). So we can all have actual insight into how differently our brains function. Where we struggle more and less.

[@gigahorse1475]

No you don’t. This is a scam! Get neuropsych testing done. That will give you real insight on your brain’s strengths and weaknesses.

[@shadowNlightNES]

Thank U so much for sharing this. This is definately something I hope to do. Infact I would like to do it for my children to, I think it could be quite beneficial. Thank U again for giving me a sense of what this is and how it works and for allowing yourself to be the example for the good of your viewers to become informed thus enabled through knowledge of this option. In my opinion it is nothing short of a noble endeavour. And I take into account this in my own way of expression, I liken it to a music artist who puts the innermost parts of themself into the music they confidently share with the world for the good of others, fully aware that not all others will accept them as they are when they hear it but motivated by assurity of the outcome that some people's lives will be moved by it making it worth all the while. Your sharing this may not be exactly the same as that, but I appreciate both how important it is that you did and also that you exposed something of yourself though uncomfortable because of seeing the value that could come of it... which is in essence much like right minded musicians do. I hope that makes sense. Simply, I'm just saying Thank you.

[@debral9651]

Interesting video. Thanks for sharing

[@cblaney3931]

I found this hard to follow - jumping about too much - but I appreciate that is just the editing, and you may be cutting out bits that you don't want to share for example. It would be great to have a deeper understanding of the areas that were examined, and what some of the terminology means. I have a science degree and background, but like you said in the video, feel like my brain is offline and probably will never get back online. So I may never understand this!! Good video nonetheless.

[@gigahorse1475]

Your brain isn’t offline. A lot of people here are having trouble following because this doctor is a scammer and is talking nonsense. :(

[@cristinaroe2166]

Wow. I can relate to this. Possibly have a similar brian. Also diagnosed with ADHD and am an over thinker who is easily exhausted. Had sleep problems from young. Really interesting. I think you're so brave for going through this. God bless you Paul. 🙏👍

[@catcraddle65]

Thank You for sharing . Super interesting

[@JanneGlass]

Must admit I’m sceptical about this. But I haven’t researched this so I don’t know if this method of measuring brain activity and the accompanying interpretation of the measurements is an actual proven science. But I have heard good things about neurofeedback therapy results so I think I will look into it’s availability in The Netherlands for this some time soon. It was very validating to hear you’re also struggling with first finding the motivation and then burning out so quickly. I’ve been comparing myself with a very old rechargeable battery the last few years; verrrrrry slow to charge and verrry fast to drain 😢

[@uq473]

It looks like cold reading to me

[@JanneGlass]

@@uq473 I didn’t want to be that harsh right away but I considered that as a real possibility, yes

[@gigahorse1475]

I think you’re right to be skeptical! I work in a neuroimaging lab, and as of current technology, we are not able to scan an individual and tell if they have a serious mental illness or if they are completely healthy. So how can one tell if a person has auditory processing disorder or a spiky profile based on these readings? This is especially dubious when it comes to measurement of brain *activity!* Brain activity studies are only good when done on groups.

[@jcheri9948]

Great video, thanks!

[@MoneyTreeMatters]

Thanks for this video. Very interesting.

[@enfieldjohn101]

Great video! Very interesting. I love learning about the mysterious brain. Probably in the top three least understood parts of the body along with the appendix and parathyroids. I bet if I had a scan like this done it would be somewhat similar. I have never slept well all night and its gotten worse in the last ten years. I'm always tired, easily irritated and stressed out, and it's very hard to get motivated and stay motivated to do anything. One big difference is that while I also am more of an auditory person than a visual one, I do enjoy watching movies and TV shows - as long as they aren't full of arguing, high pitched noises and flashes. I tend to prefer ones with mellow music, pleasant voices and either really deep, thought provoking but not anger inducing topics or ones that are silly. My favorite shows are nature or history documentaries, gardening or cooking how-tos, detective mysteries, etc. Especially good if there's a little humor sprinkled into them. Good examples are British Baking Show, Gardeners World, Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Monk and Rifftrax episodes where they poke fun at National Geographic specials. I also have trouble switching my attention from one thing to another. When Im absorbed in what Im doing: writing, gaming (usually turn based games), reading, watching videos like this, watching a show, or even just daydreaming, etc. I wont notice right away if someone is trying to talk to me. My wife has to tap me on the shoulder sometimes to get my attention. Often, she waits until I finish before trying to talk to me because I get irritated when someone breaks my concentration. Phones ringing is especially irritating. I'd much rather get an email or text message that I can take my time processing and replying to. It would be interesting to try this scan process though having to keep my eyes open without blinking would be hard. I had a sleep study done a few years back. The finding was that I cannot sleep with electrodes stuck to me :). They also tried a gadget that went on my face to try to tell if I had sleep apnea. Couldnt sleep with that on either. The only test I could finish was one with a microphone and camera going but nothing attached to me. It was interesting to see how often I woke up, tossed and turned etc, even after several nights of the study when I'd gotten used to the infrared camera enough to ignore it. The doctor was like "Gee, no wonder you wake up tired in the morning. You aren't getting any REM sleep." So he prescribed melatonin alternated with Tylenol PM to help me sleep. If I dont take one or the other, I get almost no sleep at all. The last time I felt rested was when I woke up from anesthesia after my parathyroidectomy. The sleep aids help, but I have to use them nightly for weeks to start to feel rested. Thanks for sharing this brain scan with us!

[@louisejoel]

So useful to have this info

[@bottled-star]

your profile is very similar to mine! it's really comforting to know i'm not alone in this experience :)

[@cybergimpmonkey]

It would be interesting to find out what percent and to what degree neurodivergents seek out some sort of physical, scientific, and/or "expert" validation for their issues because it seems like it's hard to really convince oneself on which problems are the result of brain wiring and which are parts of one's own personality. How common that feeling is could help with feeling less negative about oneself.

[@stevecarter8810]

What a fascinating insight into what is available in terms of an empirical look at mental processes. I feel like i want to get my whole family measured so we can better manage our experience and improve our effectiveness. We're pretty sure there's not a neuro-nominal in the house

[@BloomByCC]

I've ALWAYS wanted to know this about my brain!!!

[@beckyd5542]

Wow! Almost everything in there, from auditory to visual to easy overwhelm sounds just like my brain. Are you going to do a follow-up video on how to train your brain to do better, especially with getting easily overwhelmed?

[@claytonfreeman2674]

Love your video man

[@heathermalone]

Yay been looking forward to hearing how this went! 🙂 It is very interesting Paul - thankyou for sharing these insights and testing the process out. I'm sure you'll have more thoughts upon studying the results also. It feels like it basically confirms what you already suspected. I wonder whether anyone does this scan and is surprised by the results? I wonder whether there are any correlations between autistic & non-autistic results? It does seem to give a more 'inside look' on what is happening in our brains without social judgment. Not to say it's without limitations.. but it could help with the process of unmasking, perhaps. I'm using the overview from this video as a template to predict my own results. I reckon I'd be similar on the hyper-processing and prudence, but I think my visual would outweigh my auditory. Definitely have the brain fog. I feel my happy child voice is very quiet, and I've noticed I seem much less impulsive than most people, but I'm not sure.. I'll have a think about that. I wonder whether the scan results can change dramatically over time? Like, I feel my brain works differently now than before my burnout/breakdown, but I'm not completely sure how. I guess if you can change it consciously, it can change unconsciously though. I guess the next question is, what can you do and where can you go with this knowledge?

[@bakakafka4428]

Kinda miss the 'summary' where it's explained by this expert on how an autistic brain differs from the neurotypical one. I.e. too much individual info, not enough general.

[@PlanetEarthLifeSkills]

AMAZING! I remember doing my Mensa testing, in Vancouver BC Canada in the early 1990's. I was so pumped after the test. It was as if my brain was a high powered rocket, but I had been driving it for so long in school zones that I was numb. The exam was superficially what one would expect, with questions short bursts of processing, then the next. I had glimmers but it was thrilling. It was taking it for a burn on the autobahn 100th time. I think this sort of data DURING such testing would be so interesting. I have often explained myself as whatever the other operating systems were. Now it is becoming clear that I've been measuring myself with the wrong scale. I've always been visual. I've always (but for 3 times in 61 years) known exactly where I was on various maps and continuum. That it could be recorded and analyzed like that is sooooooooo cool. I can't sleep now thinking about it. It's almost something going inside your head and explaining your uniqueness, yet it's a bit like old time fortune tellers and mind readers. I have so many questions. Thank you for this!

[@sunshinegirl2015]

restful sleep is also a struggle for me. It helped when I got a cat and they always sleep with me and I can relax more now, less nightmares, but it hasn't helped enough.

[@mrs.moneyhacker4544]

Thank you so much for sharing. Please share any tips/tricks you learned about how to remap the brain for restful sleep. I so relate to what you;re going through right now and would try anything to get restful sleep!

[@DampeS8N]

This whole thing is triggering my bullshit sensor. Lots of Barnum Statements flying around mixed in with relatively obvious common sense and sciencey-sounding stuff. Doing some searches I'm seeing negative information about it on quackwatch and wishy-washy studies.

[@victorhugotoledocofre1366]

Most of us autistic people have a hard time making ends meet because of our social disabilities, yet these mental quack guys make big & quick bucks just by telling people what they want to hear. Not much of a change since phrenology times, I guess.

[@GleamGoldenrock]

Is there enough evidence showing the confidence intervals etc of the results obtained by this method tho? I’m a phd student with autism and adhd, and this to me seems like a fancy fortune telling

[@iananderson7082]

That's because, unfortunately, it is. Even if Dr. Hill actually believes what he is saying (I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he is merely interpreting artifacts from noise, rather than intentionally trying to scam the population), I've yet to see a peer reviewed scientific study that shows any efficacy in neurofeedback (that isn't also shown in things such as meditation, for example). I'd be open to reading something, anything, that was part of a controlled study, but as it stands now, the evidence is quite weak.

[@gigahorse1475]

I work in a neuroimaging lab, and I can confirm that our technology is not advanced enough to learn this much about an individual from measurements that come from *brain activity.* This smells like a scam to me.

[@tiegrsidesignsandstudio4794]

Thank you for sharing. Not quite the same, but I'm set to do a sleep study next month that will track my brain waves. I have waking dreams (like REM but while I am awake), and we're trying to figure out why.

[@234dream_big]

Very very interesting I.would like some day to take those exams too.for myself

[@gundifreitag6813]

Have you tried Rhodiola Rosea? Might be the exact thing that could help you with your difficult spots, especially the tiredness and feelings of fatigue. It really helped me a lot to become more balanced and all in all fitter and happier.

[@aspiewithattitude3213]

This was very interesting and I surely this would give you the insight on how your thought process actually works. Are there any comparison to the neuro typical thought process available?

[@silverriver7866]

I am really proud of you for doing this! I hope it gives you some peace and direction. It seems that having ASD and EI as your special interests has helped you to overcome the natural lack of introspection that many people on the spectrum struggle with.

[@BillieGote]

Lack of introspection is a Cluster B trait, not an autistic trait.

[@romicor9]

Never heard of lack of introspection as an autistic trait, though some say autistic children have no imagination (I disagree). Emotional awareness and interoception, on the other hand, can be a challenge.

[@Tilly850]

I absolutely disagree that lack of introspection is autistic. In my own family it is the spectrum members who tend toward introspection and the NTs who do not.

[@lesliegann2737]

A lack of introspection has never been an issue about me. It is more like I have too much introspection compared to the stereotype neurotypical.

[@silverriver7866]

@@lesliegann2737 That’s interesting. I guess it’s the two poles issues, can’t smell or smells are overwhelming for example. Maybe? I hope.

[@Layka-be3bz]

I would love to hear some expanded discussion on what he meant by “train the frontal lobes”. What would that entail?

[@oyahfftlisawsome]

It's interesting that you told Dr. Andrew Hill that you ignore the visual queues and only focus on the audio queues, but your titles to introduce the next video section are entire visual without you announcing it audibly

[@galespressos]

Cool!

[@zrienkersh1475]

Fascinating. How does one get this scan done?

[@Stranded360]

Have you tried keto or carnivore? There is also a book called "the gaps diet" or "the gut and psychology syndrome" because what we eat effects every part of our body and it is an extremely misunderstood and understated factor in the medical realm. (the gaps diet was written by a doctor though)

[@4everpee]

Your auditory problem are like mine and you won't regret to train it. It is syncronisation issue with visual information and auditory tuning with speech. Now I cant imagine how bad that was during most of my life. I was having a weird and monotone voice because I was not receiving any feedback when I was speaking. It was ompossible to listen and maintain eye contact at the same time because of the synchronisation problem.

[@manyBlessings2all]

Really interesting! Thank you & thanks for sharing, too.. Hope you figure ways to adjust to sleep very well.. Low stamina & low energy /fast burnout is NOT fun.. 🙏 🌟

[@earldennis3829]

Fascinating I started looking at Autism having a severe full spectrum daughter. Found out my son is a savant... Hmm genetics said both me and their mom are both autistic... These charts speak huge volumes for me thanks

[@gigahorse1475]

For anyone who wants to get this done, do “neuropsychological testing” instead. This will tell you about your brain’s strengths and weaknesses. Measurements of your brain’s activity will not. As someone who works in a neuroimaging research lab, I am very skeptical! As of our current knowledge, we cannot tell the difference between a person with a serious mental illness and someone who is completely healthy, so how can such measurements tell whether you have a spiky profile (“poet brain”), whether you are careful, tired, and have auditory processing disorder? The fact this measures brain activity is especially dubious. Brain activity studies can only tell differences between neurotypes or mental illnesses when GROUPS are scanned and their results averaged!

[@ImeldaFagin]

That was so interesting. I expected something about an autistic brain but this was way more interesting.

[@DrHill]

thanks!

[@ZhovtoBlakytniy]

When it comes to sleep deprivation, aside from wandering thoughts, I have acute haring and in the still of the night I am hearing all the little noises both inside and outside of the house. White noise helps sometimes, occasionally it can just give me a headache- I still sleep poorly, just a bit better.

[@amuletts]

Very interestin. Fascinated by the hearing thing as I had my ears tested recently. I seem to have more difficulty on the left ccurred to me processing could e worse on one side.

[@josefinjulin718]

Thanks as always for sharing with us and for great content. You said you want to help your brain to rest. Have you tried yoga nidra ? I love Ayla novas KZbin channel for NSDR (non sleep deep rest) one of few mindfulness/meditation/bodyscan stuff I can handle but I find it’s really helping me to recover and wind down

[@josephmartin1540]

It is good to see you on a video, though hoping you progress with sleeping! I wonder if this process added anything to what you already knew? Interesting or perhaps a proof of what you knew?

[@romicor9]

I had a brain scan when I was 15 and it was quite different 😁 I tend to rush regarding decisions, I can recognize when a mistake was made quickly though. My right frontal lobe was deep red with alpha and beta predominance (which probably explains the former fact), and my left and right temporal lobes weren't connecting OK (through something called anterior white commissure). I had trouble doing calculations on my mind, even if it was 8 + 5 I had to use fingers (at age 15!), but I had high intelligence regarding finding patterns, guessing what's next (from the information I already have) and vocabulary. I was diagnosed with Tourette's back then because I had a couple of tics and with ASD about 20 years later, so I've always been neurodivergent 😅 One thing I found surprising is that I have very good cognitive flexibility, something AuDHD folks often struggle with (it's one of the so-called executive functions).

[@kind_of_willow3193]

For good sleep it's necessary to stop the amount of thoughts about the day, problems, people and so on. That's hard to achieve. My "medication"against this is reading nice books that have no problematic contents. This helps my brain to focus on these quiet stories and let me fall into sleep easier and forget for a while my other thoughts, so i can even sleep better.

[@archiecook55]

I'd be interested in having my own brain scanned sometime too.

[@cassidyreynolds5522]

I was hoping there would be a definitive test result to identify autism in the scans, but it was a general overview of how your brain works.

[@misst1586]

Interesting.

[@beepbopboop3221]

My son had one, and it was informative, but I had one, and the provider didn't explain it enough. Same practice oddly enough.

[@gigahorse1475]

I’m sorry. They don’t explain enough because these guys are scammers. I can explain in more detail. But if you want real testing to help your son, look for legitimate neuropsych testing. There is no need for imaging or scans. I’m going to be doing a neuropsychological evaluation for myself very soon.

[@otavioalexandre7575]

Nice content

[@michaelhaardt5988]

I am very curious if that type of scans allows to point out a difference in how autistic people learn. Learning is the one thing that connects many apparently unconnected things on the spectrum, like dyslexia/hyperlexia, the double empathy problem and sensory processing. The senses of autistic people are not different, but their processing is, and that is learned.

[@rb7491]

Would like to see you do a video on the Muse headband, or the OmniPEMF and see if you get any benefits. So far we use an Earthing mat for the bed, weighted blanket, and fans running to help my partner sleep. She is sleeping a bit better and processing emotions a bit easier.

[@Judymontel]

Absolutely fascinating. THANK YOU, Paul!! I hope you'll share more of your journey on the sleep front. Currently attempting to make inroads on this problem as well.

[@lizsteilkie]

Have you tried binaural beats tibetan bells and alpha waves? Sounds silly but has been a game changer for my sleep. Thanks for sharing.

[@atlas_rhea]

Man I feel the exact same way. I have a Fitbit at I’m in bed for 8 hours but I get 4 hours of sleep on average! 15 mins of REM. It’s been like this all my life and it is catching up with me.

[@katyoduinn3452]

Fascinating. How do i train my brain to get some balance back from an overdominance of grumpy old man mode?

[@011silbermond]

I would SO love to do this test!! Read all of your sceptic comments, but still ... I wonder if I can get in contact with the husband of my exes exgirlfriend *lol* who does research in psychology somewhere in or near London at the university, I would really like to hear what he thinks about it. I saw him sharing sth about an autistic girl only a week ago, don´t know what he has to do with this topic yet, but ... if I´d manage to travel to London once and get this scan, would be totally fascinating. I mean I just got up and due to all the little and bigger noise from outside I´m so stressed out already, I don´t think I will ever get adapted to that and sometimes catch me thinking I might be better off deaf! 🙈🙈🙉🙉 I get so so angry and exhausted from being unable to block out all these different kinds of noises everywhere. So yeah, it´s definitely temptive to have someone at least trying to look for patterns and how they might take influence resp how own effort could reregulate. Told myself "just keep it together" for so long not knowing what goes on with my senses and brain, I will never be able to live in a normal way again anyway from all the fatigue and fibromyalgia stuff. If we could come up with meaningful data about this, spare people this downwards spiral, it would be so worth it. Sad thing is also I can see my best friend literally going towards this burnout more and more, telling me he´s tired and rushed at the same time, gets heavy legs only walking up the stairs. And he got a sleep apnoe mask already, bc at one point he got checked and it became obvious, But what shall we do, he opposite to me gets also Medikinet already which works but with this ADHD stuff, struggle hard with executive functions I´m not even sure he can keep up working regularly or end up at home like me in a few years.

[@mattiethemongoose3rd]

I guess you usually do your videos in one take for the same reason I do; editing involves looking at a screen and it's really difficult to do that. I have trouble with sleep, in the end I found it was best to accept that my bodyclock was hours behind normal working hours and don't usually go to bed until around 5am. When I used to go to bed at midnight or 1am I would never get more than an hour at a time, but when I go to bed at around 5am, I often get a four hour block of sleep, which is what you need for proper rest. Try changing the time you normally go to bed to sleep, you might find going to bed at 3am normally works better for you, even if it means being up later. I'm more productive even though I have fewer hours of time where I try to be productive now.

[@shanynkamysh9310]

Hi Paul, May be could be helpful using weighted blankyt. Have you ever tried?

[@evelynn1173]

One of the studies that I think could be helpful in autistic people is studying cortisol levels relates to autistic burnout. I've read quite a bit of research and autistic people are more susceptible to higher cortisol levels which if I'm right makes them more susceptible to burnout because nurses with burnout had higher levels of cortisol and those who had their cortisol dealt with recovered from burnout quicker and one way to reduce cortisol is dark chocolate.

[@susanbeever5708]

Consider Drs. Chris Palmer of Harvard and Sher with the metabolic mind because ketones may help your brain a lot. They are both on KZbin.

[@4everpee]

Your results resembles mine but my forntal lobe and temporal lobe were in red in all wave frequencies

[@Koryogden]

This is interesting, I have the same lag where I need people to 'give me a beat to shift gears'